


Forbidden Love

by DreamerFae



Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-03
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-10-06 10:50:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 20,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20505749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamerFae/pseuds/DreamerFae
Summary: A love that's not supposed to be. A love which consists of 2 people from different worlds.Vampire Hunter Haise brings an injured girl from the forest to his home, not knowing that she was a vampire.What will become of them?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> do leave comments if you liked it!

A dream. One that made Touka cry in her sleep.

She was with her family; her father, mother, and brother. They were vampires and lived deep in the woods, where no vampire hunter could find them. Their only sustenance was blood, humans' blood, and although they could eat human food as well, it couldn't sustain their hunger for blood long.

Their father was a very nice man. He was once saved by a human and has decided to not prey on humans as cruelly as the other vampires. He decided that their family would only feed on humans who come to these woods to suicide and never on living humans.

They kept away from the other vampires, in fear that they would offend them, and lived quietly in their small cottage in the forest. Until one day, a vampire hunter named Arima massacred everyone while Touka was out. She returned home to find her family's bodies all over the floor and wept for the longest time ever.

Despite the anger and sadness she felt, she never sought revenge. She still listened to her father's words of not killing humans and lived her life peacefully, away from the vampire hunters. This was the way of life, to lose while they lived. 

To say that she didn't have a single feeling of anger was a lie because although she wouldn't hurt humans, she swore that if she ever saw Arima, she would kill him with her own hands.

Her eyes shot open, and she raised her hand to touch the tears that fell out of her eyes while she was asleep. As she sat up in bed, she hugged her knees and buried her head in them. I miss you, papa, mama, Ayato...

A loud growl filled the air and she raised her head. It was her stomach. She hasn't eaten in months, she realized, and left her tiny home in search of any dead humans to feed on.

Searching the forest for bodies whilst she flew in her bat form, she spotted one and hesitated because it was other vampires' territory and they were very protective of it. If she did enter, she would be declaring war on them.

Her stomach growled again, and she decided to hell with it because vampires go crazy if they were without blood for too long and she hasn't eaten in months.

She landed, turned back into her human form and quickly started feeding on it. The blood tasted dull, which shows that this body has been here for at least a few days already. She sucked the dead man's blood dry and wiped the blood away from her mouth.

Suddenly, she was ambushed by a bunch of vampires. She couldn't fly to escape as they had pinned down her wings and attacked her. She was a female, and all of them were males and she couldn't fight them.

"You'll die for entering our territory and feeding on our humans!!!" They hissed.

Her tears fell as she wondered if this was the place she was going to die. If it was, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing because it meant that she could see her family again.

Her eyes slowly closed.

-

Walking through the woods, Haise started his daily routine of making sure there weren't any humans being attacked by vampires and that the area was safe. His sword hung close to his hip and he kept it close to prepare for anything.

Red eyes, pointed ears, and fangs. Red eyes, pointed ears, and fangs. Red eyes, pointed ears, and fangs.

He repeated the words over and over like a chant as he looked from side to side for any vampires. Some things about them he learned were that they pretty much looked just like a normal human, can eat human food but the only thing that differentiated them from humans, is how their appearance changes when they turn into their vampire form. 

Their eyes would turn blood red, ears turn pointed and fangs would appear in their mouth. 

It can happen to them when they choose to, or when they are exposed to blood. 

They can also turn into bats, which is a pain to catch because then they can fly to escape.

His nose picked up the scent of blood and he stopped his thoughts before he dashed in the direction of the smell. He came to an abrupt stop when he saw violet haired female lying in a pool of blood, face down. Dropping to his knees, he turned her over and slapped her cheek gently.

"Miss, are you alright?!"

She let out a groan, to his relief and he looked around. He had 2 options now; the first to bring her to his home and try to heal her, and the second was to bring her to a hospital which was very far away and risk her dying of blood loss along the way.

He decided to prevent the latter and headed for his home with her in his arms.


	2. Chapter 2

When vampires are injured badly, they lose their memories of everything for a short period of time due to the extreme stress their injuries cause them and will regain it quickly depending on the amount of blood they consume.

—

Touka awoke with a start and glanced around the foreign room she was in until she laid eyes on a male with a mix of black and white hair who stood by the door. He rushed over to her and pushed her back down onto the bed when she attempted to get up. Her whole body ached and burned.

"Wait, don't get up! You're not recovered!" The male exclaimed.

She furrowed her brows. "Who are you? Where am I? What happened?" Her throat burned, voice hoarse.

For the life of her, she can't remember a single thing.

"I'm Sasaki Haise, and I found you injured in the middle of the woods. I brought you back to tend to your wounds, but I swear they were much worse a few days ago." He paused, giving her body an eye over as though he found it odd. "Anyways, you recovered very fast, but still in no condition to do anything rigorous. Do you remember anything? Like your name or what happened?"

When she tried to recall, nothing came to mind and she found it weird. How is it possible that she couldn't remember anything?

"I only remember that my name is Touka."

"Okay..that's a good start. You don't remember anything else?" He asked.

Touka shook her head with a frown. "No."

"Maybe we should get you checked at a hospital. You're suffering amnesia."

At the mention of the hospital, she didn't know why even though she didn't have any memories, it was as on instinct she knew that the hospital was a bad idea and shook her head quickly. "Not the hospital, please."

Haise's eyes narrowed and he stared at her suspiciously. "..okay, then. We'll see how your condition goes. If it's really bad, I'll need to send you there."

She nodded. "How long have I been asleep?"

"3 days."

As if on cue, her stomach growled and she felt her cheeks warm. "I'm sorry."

Instead of being offended, Haise laughed out loud and stood up. "Nothing to apologize for. It would be weirder if you weren't hungry after being asleep for so long. I'll make something for you to eat. Just stay in bed and wait."

Once he left the room, she turned her head to the window beside the bed and looked at the blue sky. She hoped for her memories to return soon.

\--

When Haise came back with a plate of food, Touka's mouth watered at the delicious scent and only struggled to sit up against the headboard with his help. With shaking hands, she held the plate and picked up the spoon. Bits and pieces of the rice dropped as she raised the spoon slowly to her mouth and managed to get it in.

Unable to bear the pain of watching any further, he took the plate from her and held the spoon out for her. When she stared at him curiously, his cheeks turned pink from embarrassment. "You're still injured. I wouldn't want you to drop the plate and injure yourself further."

Though that is what he said, she was sure he was also saying he didn't want her to break his plate and waste the food he cooked.

Cheeks now burning, she opened her mouth to allow him to feed her. Despite not having any memories, she somehow knew that this has never happened to her before and she felt awkward and blushed at the fact that a handsome stranger was feeding her food.

For some reason, even after finishing the big plate of food, she didn't feel full.

—

"Right then, with the food problem out of the way, let's talk. Since you can't remember anything, I'll tell you about myself." Haise gestured to himself with a palm on his chest. "My name is Sasaki Haise, and my job is a vampire hunter. As the name states, I hunt and kill vampires for a living."

While he was a nice person, he was not naive and was very cautious. This was because of the difficulty in differentiating humans from vampires. They looked exactly the same so he could only judge from their behavior.

He paused to watch her reaction but she didn't flinch at his words. Instead of getting the reaction he would have liked to determine whether she was a vampire or not, she looked at him even more confused, a little hint of curiosity in her eyes.

Even so, this doesn't prove that she is innocent. Vampires looked like humans, surely they could act like humans too and pretend. But his observation won't be accurate since she has amnesia. He decided he needed more time to observe her, and definitely not because she's pretty.


	3. Chapter 3

Having been bedridden for 3 weeks and only leaving the bed for the bathroom, Touka has decided she had enough of staring out the window and sleeping all day. Looking down at her bandaged injuries, she thought that it would be alright if she took a walk around the house as a form of exercise and curing her boredom.

She appreciated how Haise would have a chat with her whenever he had time despite being busy with work and she always found herself looking forward to his returning home.

Now that he was at work and she was alone at home, she was bored to death and tossed the blanket aside. Using the wall as support, she slowly stood up and walked to the living room. Glancing around, she found the television and plopped herself onto the sofa in front of it. She turned it on and watched programs.

The more she watched, the more sleepy she felt and soon she was asleep on the sofa.

Night fell, and she awoke to the scent of something nice and sizzling sounds of cooking. Raising from the sofa, she found a blanket over her body and directed her gaze to the kitchen, where she saw Haise holding a pan in his right hand with his back towards her.

Suddenly, for a moment, the scene felt awfully familiar to her. Her mind replayed the same scene where instead of Haise, a blue-haired man stood and cooked.

The way Haise had turned, face brightening at the sight of her, tugged her heart painfully so that she felt tears prick her eyes. It felt as if the blue-haired man had done the same. Had cooked a meal for her and was very happy to see her. But the only thing was that the man's face was a blur.

"Hey, Touka. You're awake? The food's ready, come and eat." The blue-haired man would then say.

Who was this man she kept on remembering? He couldn't be a stranger since a stranger wouldn't be cooking... He had to be someone important and significant to her, if not she wouldn't be crying now. Could it be her father? Her brother? The more she tried to recall, the more the pain in her head grew.

Haise rushed over to her and had his hands on her shoulders. He peered worriedly into her face and used his hands to wipe her falling tears. "Hey, what's wrong? Do you feel pain anywhere?"

She shook her head. "I just felt like I was on the verge of remembering my past, but I can't because my head hurts when I tried to do so."

"Then don't force yourself. Come on, let's get you something to eat."

Supporting her by the shoulders, he held her as she stood up and guided her to the dining table where he made her sit. Touka watched as he brought two plates of food and placed them down in front of her before he settled on the opposite of her.

"Eat. It always makes you feel better."

Having stared at the food for seconds, she then looked up at him who had a bright smile hanging from his lips. The ends of her lips quirked at his sentence. "Thank you. I actually should have been the one cooking for you, since you've been taking good care of me for the past few weeks. You're so tired from your job and yet you still do so many things for me."

"It's a pleasure, serving a pretty girl." He grinned.

Her brows raised in suspicion. "Am I just a pretty girl to you? Why are you being so nice to me?"

He seemed taken aback by her question. "Is it wrong for someone to be nice to others? I just like it."

She frowned. "I don't know... it feels weird to be treated so nicely by a stranger."

"Well, you'll have to get used to it. You're going to be here until you recover anyways."

Upon feeling his hand over hers, Touka raised her head to look at the male in front of her. Haise smiled, slightly sad and squeezed her hand. "Everything will be alright, I promise. Just be patient."

At his words, she felt better. It was nice having someone supporting her in all of this.

"Thank you." She grinned.


	4. Chapter 4

"You're a nice guy, you know that? So why don't you have a girlfriend? Don't tell me that a handsome guy like you is still a virgin?" Touka teased casually over breakfast, stuffing a sunny side egg into her mouth as she stared at the male before her and waited for his answer.

2 weeks have passed since she had a memory and nothing similar to that has happened since. Now that her injuries are almost healed, she left her room more often than not and has been interacting and having meals with Haise. 

From complete strangers, they became friends, though still not close enough to allow for such personal questions, as he thought, but she asked about it anyway. He never expected she was that bold, not when her sleeping face looked like a calm kitten. 

The reason why he knew that was only because he checked up on her once in a while to make sure that she was recovering smoothly.

Haise sputtered, quickly putting his coffee down before he spilled it and coughed uncomfortably. The atmosphere turned awkward all of a sudden, or maybe it was just him? She seemed perfectly comfortable. 

"W-why this question? Of all the things we could talk about, why this?" He croaked.

"Oh, nothing. I was just curious. I see you spend most of your time either at work or at home with me. It's like you don't have a social life. So what's the answer?" She probed.

His jaw dropped in disbelief, as if offended. "Well, excuse me for looking like I don't have a social life but I do! I just prefer staying at home and reading my books!" He paused to think about her question and felt his cheeks burn. "And I'm not a virgin, I have had a girlfriend or two previously..."

Her brows raised in surprise and she found herself leaning forward. "Oho? How many?"

"...2."

Touka whistled in amazement. "That's good. Why did you break up with them?"

Avoiding her intent gaze, he shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked away. She could tell that he didn't want to talk about it but she wanted to know and so remained silent for his answer. If he didn't want to tell her, she wouldn't push him.

"..could we talk about something else?"

There it is.

"Sure."

\--

An hour later, Touka is holding onto the door as if it's the only thing that's allowing her to live, and grunted as Haise held her by the waist and attempted to pull her out of the house. She gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. "WHY DO I HAVE TO GO SHOPPING FOR CLOTHES?!!"

"Why? Because my clothes always go missing because you keep taking mine!! It's something I should have done a long time ago!" 

"Can't you just get it for me?!!! I don't want to go out!"

"No! I don't know your size and it's embarrassing shopping for women's underwear!"

Andddd he said it. He didn't want to but he did.

At that, she let the door and he released her. Turning around, she smirked up at him who had a face as red as a tomato's. "Is that it? Nothing embarrassing about that. Don't tell me the big bad vampire hunter can't even go lingerie shopping?" She taunted with a giggle.

Slightly pissed at her tone, he lifted his chin and looked down at her. "Then, if I bought you something skimpy and sexy to wear, would you wear it?"

She remained silent before her cheeks turned pink. Haise stared down at her, shocked that even she could look cute when she blushed and couldn't help laughing. "What? You can't even do that? That's so easy!" He mocked jokingly.

"What?! I'll kill you! Screw you, I'm going! No one's scared of a little lingerie!"

Walking along the streets, Touka clung to Haise and held his arm tightly. She shrunk away from the people who walked near her and always made sure to put a certain distance from them. Squeezing his hand when a man came too close for comfort, he looked down at her with a puzzled look. "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

She shook her head. "The reason why I didn't want to go out was because I was afraid. I haven't been out of the house since I woke up and this amount of people...they scare me.."

All of a sudden, Haise felt immensely regretful of how he had forced her to come along with him and held her close. "I'm sorry. If I had known, I wouldn't have asked you to come. But you eventually had to do this one day. It's better now than never. It's for your own good." 

His tone took on a lighter and cheerful one. "Besides, what I said about not knowing your size was true. It would help me greatly if you would do the shopping by yourself and I'll just wait outside until you're done." He coughed, cheeks warming.

Touka smiled. "No can do. You're going into the lingerie shop with me."

He groaned.

\--

After buying the clothes she wanted which took only a short period of time, she kept her word and dragged him into the lingerie shop despite his protests. She had the time of her life, watching how he stood awkwardly in the middle with women customers judging him for being there and how he'd turn embarrassed when she asked for his opinion on the lingerie.

With Haise being so cute and easily bullied, she decided that doing things that make him flustered would be her favorite entertainment from now on.


	5. Chapter 5

Haise stared at Touka, who pulled out a bunch of clothes from the laundry basket and started to hang them up. For a human, she was moving way too easily for someone who had been injured and was on the verge of dying 2 months ago.

Normally, the person would have needed to be sent to the hospital for treatment but she didn't require any. Instead, her wounds had closed too fast, and body had recovered faster than a normal human would.

She could say that she always had fast regeneration, but even so, that wouldn't clear his suspicions of her being a vampire. He shook his head. No. She could have been lying to him all this time.

He needed proper evidence to prove that she was a vampire but it's hard to do so, because of her lost memories.

He decided to be patient. It's been only 2 months. Vampires normally fed on human's blood once every few months and he needed to wait. If she did not feed at all in the time they were together, he could then safely say that she wasn't a vampire due to how they turn crazy when they don't get blood.

For her own sake, he hoped that she would regain her memories soon.

For his own sake, he hoped that she wasn't a vampire because he liked her a lot and would have to kill her if she really were one.

Snapping out of his thoughts for now, he directed his attention back to his book and couldn't help but enjoy Touka's soft humming whilst she hung up the clothes. "What are you singing?"

"Hmm? I don't know, I just feel like I know this tune."

"It's nice."

It occurred to him that in all these years of living alone, the house was only here for the purpose of him returning just to rest and his personal sanctuary. It was a place he liked to be alone in, which he shared with no one else. Back when he had girlfriends, he never once let them in his home. But now, he was actually sharing his home with a stranger whom he had just met months ago, and she wasn't even his girlfriend.

By right, he should be feeling that his personal space is being invaded by some stranger and shouldn't be liking it. Strangely, he didn't and realized how comforting it was to have someone waiting for him to return and sharing his space with him. He certainly wouldn't mind seeing her hang the clothes every day like this.

Haise had been so engrossed with his thoughts that he didn't notice her sneaking up from behind him. "What are you reading?"

It startled the shit out of him as he almost dropped his book and held it tightly. "The Black Goat's Egg. It's a psychological book."

"Hmm, you read some boring books, don't ya? No wonder you're such a boring person." Touka answered, unimpressed.

He turned to her, opening his mouth to protest but found his words stuck in his throat as he came face to face with her. Those blue eyes of hers stared deeply into his own, and he could literally feel her breath on his. 

Their faces were only centimeters away from another, and his cheeks warmed at the proximity. Her lips parted slightly and his eyes followed the action, gaze lingering on her pink lips for longer than appropriate.

"You're too close! I'm taking a shower!" He exclaimed, standing abruptly and quickly ran into his room before slamming the door behind him.

Touka frowned and picked up the book he left behind.

—

Slamming the door behind him, Haise placed his hand over his racing heart and willed for it to calm down but to no avail. What was this? Why was his heart racing from just being so close to her? Why the hell was he staring at her lips like he wanted to kiss them?

He hadn't experienced this in a long time since it's been a few years since his relationship with a woman. And it just struck him that he hasn't taken into account that he has been living with an amnesiac and beautiful woman.

The reason why he didn't think of this before was that she didn't look this attractive when he first found her as compared to now. Back then, her hair was disheveled, face stained with dirt and mud, the body a mess with multiple wounds. The dress she had on wasn't flattering either, with it being filled with holes.

Now, she wore a black skater dress that went only to her thighs, the darkness of it matching her midnight blue eyes—where one of it is covered by her violet-colored bangs—and she smelt of flowers. It might be due to her shampoo or body soap but she sure as hell smell nice, enticing, and so womanly.

He needed to be more careful in his interaction with her. He couldn't be too close to her.

Despite his warnings to himself, he felt like his heart was in a lot of trouble.


	6. Chapter 6

Being amnesiac, Touka obviously didn't have a single clue as to what Haise was so embarrassed about. So what if she was too close to him? Was that wrong? 

Taking advantage of the fact that she was alone, she turned the laptop on and hoped to find the answer to her question. She then came across many articles by which she was intrigued by and decided to do up some reading. After reading, she gave some thoughts to his behavior and concluded that it was actually natural for him to act that way.

It was just weird of her to think him as odd. She was the odd one, not knowing everything. Her eyes scanned the google search results and she clicked on a link which title said 'Good qualities in a man'. The qualities she saw there; caring, thoughtful, patient, can cook, and handsome, which she felt that Haise had everything written there.

Since he had all these wonderful qualities, why was he still single? If it were her, she would have dated him a long time ago. She found her cheeks burning at the fact that she had just admitted she wouldn't mind dating him and realized she might actually like him more than she thought she did.

All this time, she's been treating him as a normal friend, never treating him as a guy. Now she's slowly begun to realize Haise was an eligible male, one she would consider being more than friends with.

Even with her new thoughts, Touka has decided to act normal whenever she's with him, lest he finds her weird. But instead of him finding her weird, it was she who found him weird.

It started when he was passing her kitchen utensils. The moment their hands touched, he quickly snatched his away and turned his back to her. "Sorry." He mumbled.

It seemed that he was trying to avoid her and it can be seen from how he'd leave the room when she entered, put a certain distance between them on the couch, and his eyes never meeting hers when they talked.

Though she found out a lot of things through the articles she read, she didn't know what his feelings towards her were. Because of that, she felt that she was being hated by him and disliked the way he was treating her as if she were some kind of germ. What happened to the friendship they once had?

Not wanting to wait until her anger reached its climax and exploded, she decided to have a talk with him and maybe give him a piece of her mind.

"Listen, I know what I did that day upset you, but you don't have to avoid me like that. It makes me sad."

Haise seemed alarmed at her words. "No! It didn't upset me and I don't hate you! I wasn't avoiding you either--"

She raised a brow and he shrunk at her piercing gaze. "O-okay yes I was avoiding you but it's definitely not because I hate you."

"Then why?"

He hesitated, "Remember how our hands met when I passed you the kitchen utensils? I pulled away immediately because I felt a spark. It made me feel all warm and fluttery..." He trailed off, not wanting to explain further and hoped that she would get the hint.

"And why is that a bad thing?"

"It isn't, per se... You wouldn't understand now since you don't have your memories back."

Touka didn't seem convinced but let it go anyway. "Whatever. But I demand you to have a movie marathon with me next week. To make up for all the suffering I endured because of your warm and fluttery feeling." She spoke a little sarcastically and he winced at her tone.

"Sure... What movies would you like to watch?"

"Any. Just borrow a few you think we would enjoy together."

Haise sighed. He made a huge mistake in entrusting the borrowing of movies to his best friend, Hideyoshi Nagachika just because he had a girlfriend. Had he known the male was going to use romance movies to set him up with Touka, he would have thrown the movies at the blonde-haired male the moment he got them.

Putting the DVD with a cover that looked the least raunchy into the DVD player, he took a seat beside Touka on the sofa and prayed for the best. He glanced over at her and couldn't help but smile when he saw how excited she was--grinning with excitement. 

It's been an awkward week between the two of them and he couldn't blame her for looking forward to hanging out properly like this.

All too soon, the end of the movie was approaching and it just had to end with a kiss. Though curious at what face Touka was making right now, Haise decided not to look at her and make things even more awkward.

Having stared at the kissing couple for a solid few seconds, Touka chewed on her lower lip and forced herself not to move. It's probably the kissing scene that's causing her to have a huge urge to grab the male beside her and kiss him like the woman did to her boyfriend in the movie and she secretly wondered how it would be like to kiss Haise.

Would it be soft and gentle? Or would it be hard and demanding? Her stomach clenched at the thought. She liked him quite a bit so it wouldn't be a problem if she did kiss him, now would it?

He cleared his throat and removed the DVD from the player. "Well then, we should switch to the next movie. Which one do you want to watch?"

Instead of answering him, Touka remained silent, her head down, hair covering her expression.

"Touka-chan? Are you--"

She had stood up, grabbed him by the shoulders and pressed her lips to his.


	7. Chapter 7

Touka was worried that she did something wrong for a second there when Haise didn't respond to her kiss. Soon, he returned the kiss and had his hands on her waist to pull her closer. The end of her lips curved up into a smile.

Her hand moved down to rest on his chest, directly over his heart and she could feel it beating really fast under her palm. She was pretty sure hers was too.

The other hand moved up to tangle into his hair, which felt so soft and silky under her fingers. The way he had sucked on her lips gently and then tilted his head to gain deeper access sent butterflies to her stomach. He definitely wasn't lying when he said he wasn't a virgin, after all.

They stood chest to chest, her soft breasts pressing against his hard chest. Touka found herself bending backward whilst his hands supported her back and his teeth intently bit down on her lower lip as if asking for something.

Remembering something she read from the articles, she opened her mouth to allow his tongue to slip in. She gasped at the contact of their tongues before moaning at the way he kissed her.

Haise's hands roamed down to her butt, squeezing and it is only when she let out a shudder and a loud moan that he separated from her. She whined at the loss of his body's warmth against hers and they watched each other as they breathed heavily from the steamy kiss.

The male ran his hand through his hair in frustration and cursed. "This wasn't supposed to happen. We can't do this. It was wrong of me to—you shouldn't have kissed me."

She noticed how he had taken a step backward when she took a step forward to him. "Why is it so wrong? We like each other so why not?"

"It's not... we like each other but in a friend's kind of like. We don't love each other. We are just friends."

Another step forward. "What if I want to be more than friends with you, Sasaki?"

Another step backward. "We can't. What if you have a boyfriend or a husband waiting for you? We can't do this, at least not until you have your memories back."

She frowned, opening her mouth to protest but couldn't find any words to say back to him when he stared at her, his eyes begging her.

"Can we agree to not do any of this until your memories are back and if your feelings are still the same, we can then talk about it?" Haise pleaded.

Touka hesitated. "..alright."

"Thank you. I think we should head to bed for tonight." He whispered as he switched off the television and packed the DVDs back into the paper bag. Giving her a weak smile, he bid her goodnight before entering his bedroom and closing the door.

\--

Leaning his back against his door, Haise hit himself on his head many times and cursed softly. Why had he returned her damned kiss? When she kissed him, he had a choice to push her away but he was too busy having an internal war with himself. His mind screamed no, but his body yearned for this.

Having her soft lips on his was wrong on so many levels, yet it felt so right at that moment. He should have thought of the consequences of reciprocating the kiss but apparently he did not think it through thoroughly enough.

He had returned her kiss, sucking on her lips and closed his eyes. He remembered how the curves of her waist and the softness of her body felt against his before finally realizing she was so female and 100% woman. 

Kissing her lit a fire in him, making blood rush to his cheeks, chest warming and body heating. He felt giddy, euphoric, happy all at the same time. He swore that he would never ever forget that moan she released afterward. It was so sexy. 

He couldn't remember the last time a kiss made him feel like he wanted to hold that woman in his arms and kiss her forever. To put it simply, it was mindblowing and he enjoyed it very much.

Running his hand over his face, reality slammed into him and he couldn't believe he actually had the guts to do such intimate things to her that only a lover would do. He just couldn't keep his urges in, couldn't he? 

When he stopped the kiss from going any further and separated from her, the sadness on her face made his stomach drop and he instantly felt pained and a sense of regret. Her expression would probably be etched in his memory forever. 

He wished he could do anything, just anything to see a smile on her face again. But alas, he didn't know what to do.

He blamed her for tempting him by starting it though. What man would refuse a kiss from a pretty lady? Though half the blame went to him for continuing it.

As he thought, his heart was in a lot of trouble. Even now, as he willed for it to calm down, it wouldn't stop racing. It showed how affected by that kiss he was and for the first time, he realized how hard he was falling for her.

Haise placed his hands on his head and squatted down with a groan. How was he going to face her tomorrow and the day after? It was definitely going to be awkward.


	8. Chapter 8

Long after Haise had returned to his room, Touka still stood there and stared at the sofa. She raised her hand to touch her trembling lips and couldn't help but remember how he had kissed her so skillfully and touched her in ways that lit her body on fire.

The broad shoulders under her hands and the way he held her in his strong arms made her feel protected and she wished—wanted—to be in his arms forever.

His hair was soft and she liked how it curled around her fingers. She also liked how he shivered when she touched his nape, sensitive. He smelt of mint, refreshing. His body was warm, inviting.

Everything about him attracted her to him.

The kiss was only for fun on her part but she felt as if it changed everything between them. She doubted she could ever look at him again without being reminded of the steamy kiss they had.

Suddenly, the nice male friend she had, became a man whom she would very much like to kiss again.

It also dawned upon her that she doesn't just want his body, but also wanted everything of him—his body plus his personality. She wanted the friend he was and the male he becomes when they touch.

\--

The next few days had been incredibly awkward. Although Haise did make an attempt to have casual conversations with her whilst pretending nothing happened between them, the awkwardness would return whenever they stopped talking.

She remembered how pained he looked after the kiss that day and hoped to make it up to him by cooking him meals. Now as she stood in the kitchen, she wondered what she should cook for him. He wasn't a picky eater, and pretty much ate everything. Something healthy would be good, she thought, since he often went to the gym to keep himself fit as his job's requirement.

Touka quickly readied the ingredients out on the table and started chopping them with the knife. As she continued to do so, something flashed in her mind. She recalled watching a lady with light-colored hair, bangs covering her right eye who smiled down at her.

"You really love seeing mama cook, don't you?" The lady would say.

At that sentence, a piercing pain seared through her head. Distracted by the pain, she didn't watch where the knife went and accidentally cut her finger. She let go of the knife immediately and stared at the blood oozing out of the small wound. It wasn't as if she had cut her whole finger off but there was so much blood.

Seeing blood for the first time since her amnesia, she felt something in her. Her stomach growled and throat dried. Darting her tongue out to lick her lips, she brought her finger to her mouth and sucked the blood. The richness of the blood filled her mouth and she thought how it tasted so amazingly good and made her head feel light.

It's been a long time since she tasted blood—wait did she just drink blood?! She suddenly remembered how Haise had told her that vampires were blood-sucking creatures and how good blood tastes to them.

Dread filled her and she ran towards the bathroom. No, please no.

Her deepest fear was realized when in the mirror reflected her with bright red eyes, pointed ears and a pair of fangs.

Grabbing her head, she couldn't believe it. I am not a vampire. I am not a vampire. I am not a vampire.

She chanted the words over and over again, believing that this was all a nightmare. Looking back into the mirror, she still had the same appearance, the one of a vampire and her breath came away short. She was starting to hyperventilate and walked around the house. What should I do? What should I do? She asked herself nonstop.

Too absorbed in her thoughts of what to do, she didn't see that she was approaching a wall fast and hit her head against it. Dropping backward, her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she knocked out.

When she awoke, it was almost dark. Groaning, she slowly got up and clutched her head in pain. Memories of her family and her being a vampire suddenly returned to her.

She saw it as a blessing that she finally know what's going on, and also a curse because she didn't know what she was going to tell Haise. He was a vampire hunter for god's sake and she would die if he found out her true identity.

But before she could decide on anything, the door clicked and she instantly knew he was home. Running to the kitchen, she quickly cleared the blood and grabbed the knife to make it seem like she was cooking normally.

Act normal. Act normal!

Every footstep Touka heard made her heart beat faster. What if he somehow knew she was a vampire already? Maybe his company told him—

"Hey, I'm home! Oh—are you cooking? That's rare."

He seems normal, she thought.

"Ah yeah, just thought of thanking you for always taking care of me. It'll take a while so you can go shower first."

"Thanks!"

He left her there, unbeknownst that a vampire was standing in his house.


	9. Chapter 9

To be or not to be?

To live or to die?

Touka took the next few days to think about it and she came to an answer which any normal person would have. To survive. That meant she would not tell him that she has regained her memories and that she was a vampire. 

She knew it was wrong of her to do so, and she would definitely feel guilty but she had no choice. It was either that or death and obviously she didn't want to die at such a young age.

So she pretended. She smiled. She acted as if she didn't remember anything about her life. She pretended to be the amnesiac girl that he had rescued.

That was one issue resolved. Another problem she had was her feelings. She liked Haise, yes, but she didn't know if she loved him. After all, she has never fallen in love before and can't tell the difference between the two.

It's been a few days since the kiss and even though he had made her promise to never let it happen again, he never said she couldn't think about it. She cursed. She knew she wasn't supposed to have these feelings for him since they were mortal enemies, vampire hunters always killing vampires and she should hate him for that.

But she couldn't find it in her heart to do so. From the start, he had treated her so kindly, despite her without any memories and him not having a single clue that she was a vampire. Come to think of it, she barely knew anything about him. 

Why he chose this job, what are his hobbies, what is his favorite food, where is his family, what kind of woman he liked?

She shook her head. The last question didn't matter.

Despite that mindblowing kiss and her feelings, they could never be together. They were two people from two different worlds. She decided she would forget about her feelings for him as they would only bring her sorrow and misery.

\--

I'm not coming home for dinner. - Haise

\-- 

That was what he had texted her and Touka blinked to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. Haise was home as if he had forgotten the text message he sent her. "I thought you weren't eating dinner? I didn't prepare anything for you..."

Meeting her shocked gaze, he smiled sheepishly and placed a hand at the back of his head. "Right. I'm actually only back to change clothes for the dinner I'll be having outside later. Be back in a bit."

He disappeared into his room and returned to the living room 15 minutes later. He changed into a black tuxedo and a neat tie rested at his neck. "How do I look?"

Devilishly handsome, was what she thought. The tuxedo accentuated the broadness of his shoulders and the thickness of his thighs. The black color matched the black and white colors of his hair and made him look 1000 times more handsome than usual. She wanted to slap herself for the observation. What happened to forgetting about her feelings?!

Clearing her throat, she willed for her heart to calm down. "You look good. What's with the outfit? Going on a date?" She teased, letting a smile hang from her lips.

Suddenly, Haise looked embarrassed. "Thanks. Well, I'm going on a group date. They didn't have enough people so they dragged me in. We're going to karaoke first, then to a bar."

She moved to adjust the tie even though it was already perfect. It was the only time she could be close to him without him pushing her away. To be honest, she did not like that he was going on a date. At all. 

He stared down at her with a frown. Maybe it was because he's been with her for a little over 3 months, or maybe she occasionally wore her heart on her sleeves, but he could tell there was sadness in her smile.

They were standing very close to one another right now, to the extent that he could smell the lavender from her hair and feel the heat of her body. He was then reminded of the fiery kiss they had and resisted the urge to take her in his arms again.

Tell me you don't want me to go, and I won't go.

He hoped that she would say something, anything to stop him from going but she did not. 

Instead, she stepped backward and gave him a bigger smile. "That sounds great. Have fun."

Haise felt his heart shatter at her words. Even though he had insisted on them not becoming a couple until her memories returned, he wished he hadn't said that at all. Because at this moment, he wanted nothing more than to stay at home with her, have her in his arms and kiss her all night.

He forced himself to turn his back to her. "Thanks. I'll probably be back late so don't wait up for me."

With that, he left.


	10. Chapter 10

Touka plopped down onto the sofa with a huge sigh. She had done it, basically asking him to go get a girlfriend. Only God knew that it wasn't what she wanted but it needed to be done. Once he had a girlfriend, she would be able to forget about her feelings for him and move on. 

But why, even if she believed so, did her heart ache? She would rather drop off the face of the earth than see Sasaki with another woman. His girlfriend would be so lucky to have him since he had almost every quality a woman would want in a man and he probably would make a good lover too, judging from the kiss they shared.

Bringing her knees up, she hugged it close to her chest and buried her face in them. No matter how hard she tried to get him out of her mind, he just wouldn't leave her thoughts. His smiling face showed up the more she tried to distract herself and she held back a sob. He's been gone for only 15 minutes and yet here she was, missing him so much, as if he hasn't been around for a year.

She should be glad that he would be happy with another woman but she was selfish. She wanted him to be happy with her. She wanted him.

This was the first time in her vampire life feeling this way. So upset, so lonely and so very selfish. As a young girl, she has never asked much from her parents. Even after becoming an adult, that part of her remained the same. But now despite knowing that she could never have him, she still craved for him. 

Once, she asked her father how he knew he loved mother and then he told her that when you have strong feelings for someone, you cannot imagine life without them by your side. That's when he knew he had to marry her mother.

And now, she finally understood what her father had meant. She wanted Haise for his caring personality, his bright smiles and his gentle touch. It's ironic that she used to think she could survive without a man but now she felt as if she would die if she didn't have him.

Her eyes widened at the realization. She loved him.

But it was too late. He was gone, out of her reach and into the arms of another woman. If she had another chance, she swore she would take it and never let him go again.

\--

Now at the karaoke place, Haise waited patiently for his colleagues to set up the mics and cd players, and couldn't help but look at the clock. 8pm. He wondered what Touka was up to, at this time. Was she watching television? Or was she waiting for him to return home? 

The latter made him frown. Come to think of it, this was the first time the two of them have been apart. Usually, they would be home eating dinner together and chatting happily. He missed those times. But now, he was at this ridiculous place that he didn't even want to be at.

The 3 girls that his colleagues arranged to have a group date with entered the room and took their seats after greeting one another. One took her seat next to Haise, boldly sitting so close to him that their thighs touched and straight-up cupped his cheek before leaning in close. "Oh my, you're very handsome, onii-san*!"

*onii-san means big brother

With how minimal coverage her outfit had and the way she was touching him, he would have reacted with embarrassment at being given attention by a beautiful lady but now he felt absolutely nothing. Her exposed cleavage and butt did not attract him, nor did her touch gave him sparks like Touka's touch did.

Not that he's ever seen her breasts or butt, it's just that she always made him feel comfortable and now he wasn't feeling it.

"T-thanks..." He felt his personal space was being invaded so he awkwardly pushed her away and shifted to the side.

The woman took the hint and left him alone. Halfway through the singing, he decided to take a break and went to the toilet. 

Finally alone with his thoughts, he recalled how the sadness had reflected in the smile that Touka gave him and clenched his chest. He never wanted to make her feel that way, nor did he want to see her make an expression like that ever again. 

He rubbed his hands over his face with a sigh after realizing how much of a hypocrite he was. Even after he had told her firmly that they would only date after she regained her memories, now he was the one pining for her when she doesn't even remember anything about her life and wanted to date her now.

From the moment he knew his feelings were in trouble, he should have stayed away from her, not let his heart fall victim to another woman again. It was ironic how he swore to never fall in love again but here he was, missing Touka like crazy and wanting for this to end so he could return home to her.

He loved her.

The moment he realized that, he decided he was going to tell her his feelings. So, he dashed out of the toilet, into the karaoke room, grabbed his bag and ran out to get a taxi home.

\--

Walking aimlessly around the apartment, Touka glanced at the clock then at the door. It was 10pm and she was worried that something happened to him even though he told her not to wait for him.

The door clicked and Haise ran into the house, slid to a stop in front of her, panting.

She blinked. "Hey, you're back. Why were you running? You're dripping with sweat! I'll go get a towel--"

He grabbed her arm. "Wait. I need to tell you something."

Touka stared up at him with confusion on her face.


	11. Chapter 11

"W-What is it?" Touka held her breath. This was it, he was going to tell her that he got a girlfriend and won't be able to spend time with her anymore. His girlfriend was going to move in and they're going to get married and she'll have to move out and she'll never see him again. Oh, how she dreaded his words.

Haise inhaled and exhaled several times, trying to catch his breath because he ran from where the taxi dropped him off, up the stairs without waiting for the lift and then into the apartment. "Listen, I know what I said about us not dating until your memories returned, but I was hoping you'd make an exception."

He paused to breathe. "I have been holding back my feelings for you and I didn't know when but I've fallen in love with you along the way. I was afraid—that if we were to date, and your memories returned—that you would discard me—toss me away. It was what—" he swallowed—"my previous girlfriends had done to me. I didn't want to be abandoned. But no matter how I tried, I just couldn't stop my feelings. You brought light into my dull and boring life and I know that I now look forward to returning home not only because I can rest but because you are waiting for me."

"So um, will you please be my girlfriend? That is, if your feelings haven't changed? If it's okay for us to date even when your memories are not back?" His eyes held hope.

Touka blinked once, then twice as tears brimmed in her eyes. Whatever he wanted to say, she was not expecting this—to have her feelings reciprocated by him.

Alarmed by her crying, he panicked and quickly tried to wipe her falling tears with his hands. "I'm sorry—"

She shook her head and moved to cup his cheeks with a smile, eyes glistening with tears. "I love you too, Sasaki. I only realized it after you left for the group date and I thought it was too late. I want you, your stupid smiles, your lame jokes, all of you."

She then hesitated partly because of her vampire self but she told herself she would never let this chance go away. "It doesn't matter whether my memories are back or not, because I know that I will stay with you through it all if you'll do the same for me. Yes, I will be your girlfriend. I just wish that you could have talked to me about your previous girlfriends."

A grin spread across his face and he placed his hands over hers. "Thank you. Thank you! And I will share with you everything from now on, as your boyfriend."

He had originally planned to only nurse her back to good health when he found her injured in the forest but had since fallen deeply in love with her.

Touka smiled. "How was the group date by the way?"

At that, he pouted. "Would you hear this? I was sexually harassed by a girl! She sat so close to me and touched me."

She laughed, sending flutters to his already racing heart. Ah, what he would do to hear this beautiful laughter every day. When they were friends, he probably made so many jokes just to hear her like this.

"And where did she touch you? Here?" She teased, placing her hand on his hand before moving to his cheek. "Or here?" Her thumb rubbed his full lips and her voice suddenly turned sensual. "Or here?"

"Is that jealousy I hear? Seeing you have it is kinda cute." Haise murmured, leaning in close with his eyes on her lips, arms circling her waist.

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she stepped closer to him and ran her fingers through his hair. "Only because it wasn't me. Kiss me." She whispered.

"With pleasure."

Their lips met and it felt like the first time—electrifying and mind-blowing—and they only separated for a mere 2 seconds before going in for more.

—

Some things that changed after becoming a couple was that they had more physical contact, often kissing, hugging and holding one another's hands, and the other was going out for dates. Haise also insisted that she call him by his first name since he was already calling her by hers and he's just so happy when she reluctantly but finally agreed to do so.

It was something Touka wasn't used to because this was the first time in her life she's calling a male by his first name and also it is a huge step up from previously calling him by his family name. She felt closer to him now, and somehow it felt like they were finally a couple.

And she'd never admit, but being his girlfriend is the happiest she's been in her long vampire life. 400 years had passed since the last time she'd been happy with—she paused, lips trembling—her family. In her happiness, she had completely forgotten that a vampire hunter had murdered them all and she needed to find the guy before killing him for taking away the only happiness and family she had.


	12. Chapter 12

One night, Haise fidgeted and fiddled with his fingers, looking extremely nervous, which caught Touka's attention and she decided to wait patiently for him to say what he wants to say. "T-Touka, do you want to come sleep with me tonight?"

In the same bed... A blush formed on her cheeks. "You want to..take our relationship further..?"

"N-no! I mean I do, but that isn't what I meant but sleeping together. Erm, I just don't know, thought it would be nice if we could just cuddle and talk??" He covered his face with his hands. "Never mind, it's stupid, forget it."

She burned with embarrassment at misunderstanding his words but felt strangely disappointed when he said it wasn't so. Anyways, the thought of laying in his arms on his bed sounded nice.

Talking, huh? She would love to get to know him better. Despite being a couple for a few weeks and friends before, she realized she didn't know much about Haise. He always made an effort to get to know her but never talks about himself.

"Okay."

Haise's face immediately brightened and he gave her a quick kiss.

—

Settling comfortably in bed, Touka laid her head on his chest where she listened to the beating of his slightly racing heart and smiled. It was a cold rainy night, the warmth that resonated from his body and his arms protectively wrapping around her strangely made her feel safe.

Silence filled the room, apart from the pitter-patter sounds of the raindrops on the windows.

"So, what did you want to talk about? Don't tell me you used talking as an excuse to have me in your bed and to touch me?" She asked playfully with a smile, drawing circles on his chest.

He flinched. "N-no! It wasn't an excuse! I really wanted to just chat with you but I'm not sure about what to say. We can actually talk about anything. Erm, do you have anything you want to know about me?"

Her lips formed a thin line. "..I want to know about your past girlfriends. I know it's a delicate topic for you but I need to know what they did to you to make so afraid of starting a relationship. You mentioned that they abandoned you?"

Haise hesitated. "Right. Where to start? It's a long story, you know."

"I'm all ears."

"Okay. I met my first girlfriend when I was 18. At the time, she was the most popular girl in school and I had no idea why she chose me, a nerdy guy who liked reading books and studying, to be her boyfriend when she could have other better guys. She told me she liked someone who didn't stand out and wasn't arrogant so I accepted her word for it."

He paused to recall those innocent days. "We got along quite well in the beginning, often going out for dates and enjoyed our time together. After some time, she suddenly told me she had family and money issues and that she couldn't afford the stuff she wanted. I ended up paying for her transport, food, and even items she wanted like a luxury bag. But being a silly young boy in love at that time, I thought it was normal for a boyfriend to buy things for his girlfriend. Hide—my best friend—warned me that it was a toxic relationship and that I should break up with her before I got my heartbroken. But I didn't listen to him until it finally happened."

His voice wavered and Touka squeezed his hand to reassure him. He smiled down at her and whispered a thank you.

"One day, I overheard her saying to a guy that I was stupid enough to be fooled by her lies of being 'broke' and 'having family issues'. With my own eyes, I saw the guy kiss her and she welcomed his attention. That was when I knew I was being played the whole time and that she didn't love me. I should have listened to Hide but I was too blindly in love to see that."

"I'm so sorry to hear that." She said, sorrow evident in her words and she leaned in for a kiss. His arms tightened around her waist and he returned the kiss before pulling back with a sorrowful smile on his face.

"Listen, if it's too hard on you, I don't need to hear about the second girlfriend story. We can save it for next time." She says softly and he shook his head.

"I'll tell you. It's been bottled up inside of me far too long. Besides, I feel better after telling you." He forced a smile.

Touka wasn't entirely convinced and cupped his cheeks. "Okay... but take your time."

"Mm."

He went on to tell her about his second girlfriend who seemed like a good and quiet girl at first but eventually revealed her true colors as the clingy and stalker type, demanding to know his whereabouts every hour and not allowing him to talk even to his female co-workers. 

When he told his girlfriend about how he didn't like this part of her and wanting to go back to how they were when they first started dating, he had hoped that she would understand but she didn't and decided to just break up with him. He had begged her not to do so, because he loved her so very much but in the end, she still abandoned him for another guy.

"As you can tell, I have a problem with my tastes in women and issues with abandonment. It hurts to be the one left behind and I don't want to experience the horrible feeling anymore. Will you promise me not to leave me?" 

His eyes showed vulnerability, something that she's seeing for the first time. He was baring his heart and soul and it took everything in her not to shed tears at his horrible experience with women. He was only a nice guy and didn't deserve any of that. She nodded. "I promise, Haise."


	13. Chapter 13

Haise yawned as he exited the bedroom, glancing around the living room looking for Touka before spotting her in the kitchen preparing breakfast for the both of them. Despite having this scene every day, he never got tired of watching her hard at work. 

Strolling over to the kitchen, he downed a cup of warm water and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend from behind. "Good morning," he whispered into her ear.

It was as if she always knew what he was going to do, be it when he hugged her or surprise her. He's always left disappointed by her lack of surprised reaction. "Morning, sleepyhead. I was about to wake you up. You were going to be late for work." 

"Ah... about that. I won't be going to work for the next 3 days..." He trailed off.

At that, Touka turned around and raised her brows. "Why is that? What are you not telling me, Haise?"

He had the nerve to look at her with a sheepish smile. "I kinda got injured at work and they gave me days to rest..."

This time, she was surprised, her eyes widening. "Hurt! Where? Why didn't you tell me?!" She then pulled up his shirt and sleeves to reveal his bandaged chest and arms. Her voice lowered to a whisper. "Was it another vampire?"

His job was a vampire hunter. Every night as she waited for him to return home, she would be filled with dread because as a vampire herself, she knew how deadly vampires were, especially those who drank a lot of humans' blood. 

While usually, he would come back with only bruises and scratches, this was the first time she had seen him with injuries so serious that he had to be wrapped up in so many bandages. She frowned as she ran a palm over his bandaged chest. 

"Why do humans and vampires have to be at war? It's so sad."

Though she was a vampire, her family was already dead so whether the other vampires lived or died was none of her business. It's just that she felt that it is sad where certain vampires like her who do not kill for blood get hunted by vampire hunters just because they were born vampires. 

And now that she's dating Haise, she didn't want to see him get hurt by her kind. It scares her to have him leave her all alone if he's killed. With what happened to her family, she doesn't want to experience that kind of pain ever again.

Haise's eyes softened and he cupped her cheek. "We vampire hunters have a duty to ensure that the whole human race is not extinct due to vampires. It's our job to ensure the continuity of humans. So we have to kill any vampire that threatens our duty and job."

"But does it make sense for someone to be killed just because they are a different being from the majority? Even if they did nothing wrong?" She protested.

His eyes hardened. "Yes, it is a sin because they are born like that. Vampires are blood-sucking creatures, Touka. They kill humans. Every single of the vampire hunters chose this profession because they have had their loved ones killed by a vampire. Vampires shouldn't be allowed to live and I feel the same way."

She could sense the hatred in his voice and couldn't help but wonder if he had lost someone precious to a vampire before. "Did something happen to your loved ones..?"

"Yes, my parents were tortured and killed by a vampire named Jason. As a child, I saw what he did to my parents. He ripped their nails off one by one, as he forced them to count downward from 1000, ripped their arms and legs off when they knocked out and finally killed them. You have no idea how I sat there, hidden inside the closet, frozen in my place and how I felt when I couldn't do anything to help them."

Haise's body shook violently now, and she tried to soothe him by running her hands up and down his arms. "I was sent to an orphanage for a while before a nice vampire hunter adopted me. His name was Arima Kishou."

Arima Kishou! The man who killed her family. Touka listened on intently. Who knows, she could get some clues to killing him.

"Arima treated me as if I were his own son. He taught me how to read, brought me out to play but he was taken away from me just like that. The CCV, my company, told me that Arima volunteered to stay behind to kill a vampire who cannibalized his own kind because he was the CCV's death reaper and the strongest. But even he was killed."

His tears ran down his cheeks now. "I lost everyone I loved because of vampires and I will never forgive them for as long as I lived."

Touka didn't know whether she should feel relieved that Arima was already dead, or pity for Haise who had suffered so much all because of her own kind. For now, she enveloped her arms around his shaking body and kissed his tears away.

She only saw her own kind as the victimized side and was completely unaware of the suffering that her kind has brought to humans. The humans were wrong in killing them, as she had always thought, but now she wasn't so sure anymore.


	14. Chapter 14

"Heyyyyy, Haise! Didja get a girlfriend or what? You seem so happy these days." Hide teased, slinging an arm around the grinning male's neck.

Haise's cheeks turned pink. "Yeah. I'm so happy with her, Hide."

"Good to hear. You sure she isn't like your previous girlfriends? Wouldn't want the same thing to happen to you, yeah."

Knowing what Hide meant, he nodded with a smile. "I trust her."

"What's her name?"

"It's Touka."

He pondered. "The name sounds familiar. Oh well. Is she pretty? Show me pictures sometimes. Oh man, I want a girlfriend too!!!"

At that, Haise realized that despite being a couple for 2 months now, they didn't have any pictures together.

\--

"Touka, let's take some pictures together!"

The female froze. "Why?"

"Do you remember I told you about my best friend--Hide? He wants to see some pictures and I also want some. We don't have any even though we're a couple!"

"I don't like taking pictures..." Touka trailed off. It was true that she didn't like it but the real reason was that her identity as a vampire might be exposed if her face is seen and she is definitely not going to risk it.

"Eh... Please?" He pleaded with a pout.

She avoided his puppy eyes. "I'm sorry, Haise..."

"I promise I won't show it to anyone. Just one picture?"

After a long minute of staring, Touka eventually gave in. She couldn't deny him, not when he looked so sad. "Okay fine. But no sharing to anyone else, okay?"

Like a puppy, his eyes lit up. Within a second, he scooted over to her on the sofa, slung his arm over her shoulders and had his phone out. 

"Say cheese!" He exclaimed as he grinned for the photo. Still not wanting to risk her identity, Touka decided to last-minute turn to Haise and kissed his cheek for the shot.

Blinking, the male slowly let his hand down and looked over to his girlfriend. Soon, his cheeks burned as one hand went to the cheek that she kissed. Leaving his phone somewhere on the sofa, his hands rested on her waist and he leaned in to kiss her on the lips. 

Her arms went around his neck and she let out a moan of approval. "Mmm.."

"You can't do that so suddenly... You make me want to do things to you." He murmured, lips separating from hers and she grinned. 

"What do you want to do to me?" She whispered huskily.

His hands caressed the skin of her waist underneath her shirt, then moved upwards until they stopped below her breasts. 

As he pressed kisses to her jaw and then the sides of her neck, Touka gasped and braced her hands on his chest. "I want to do many wicked things to you." He whispered, darting his tongue out to lick her collarbone.

Her heart hammered in her chest. "Then do it."

Haise pulled back abruptly at her response and frowned. "Really? I feel that we shouldn't since your memories aren't back..."

She really wanted to do this but hesitated because she knew she would be lying to him. "It's okay. I want to. Please, Haise."

"Okay." He smiled. He then stood pulling her up with him and took her hand. They made their way to Haise's bedroom without saying a word and closed the door behind them.

\--

For some reason, despite being his girlfriend for 2 months now, the fact haven't really felt true. Not until now, as she laid on his naked chest, listening to his heartbeat slowly stabilized and bathing in the afterglow of their making love. Now, she felt like she truly belonged to him. Body and soul.

"Are you alright?" He asked worriedly, looking down at her.

"A little sore. But I'm fine. How about you?" She smiled.

Haise grinned and pressed a kiss to her sweaty forehead. "I feel great. I hope I didn't disappoint you. It's been a while since I've done this... By a while, I meant years."

"I have no memories to compare what we just did to, so I think it was okay."

"Only okay? I guess we need to practice together more then." He rolled over so that he rested on top of her and she laughed--pulling him down.

\--

As Haise watched Touka sleep, with her occasionally twitching her nose like a rabbit, he pushed her bangs away from her face.

As much as he loved her, he found some parts of her suspicious. 

How she was mysteriously injured in the forest.

How she refused to go to the hospital to regain her memories.

How her complexion looked far too pale.

How she hesitated sometimes before answering him.

How she felt pity for vampires.

How she didn't want to take pictures.

"What are you not telling me, Touka?" He mumbled.

At that moment, she chose to turn to the other side and opened her eyes. She willed for her heart to calm down. He was suspecting her.


	15. Chapter 15

Even after having breakfast, Touka's stomach growled loudly and she sighed in relief, thankful that Haise already left for work. She needed to get some blood into her body soon, or she'll turn berserk. Having completed the laundry and housework, she quickly got changed and flew to the forest.

It took her a few hours to fly across the entire forest before finding a dead boy that was in a free territory--which meant that the territory belonged to everyone and that any vampire could feast on the human without getting into fights with other vampires.

Flying to the dead human, she brought out her fangs and started drinking.

After she was done with her meal, she dragged the dried-up human into a pit that she made and dumped him there before covering the hole with leaves and wood to ensure that it doesn't get found by vampire hunters.

She always hated the blood of dead humans because they were dull and disgusting-tasting but she never had a choice. It was either eat or die.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered how Haise's blood tasted like. A living human's blood would probably taste rich and delicious, and her mouth watered at the thought of it but she shook her head. She must never suck his blood. He would know, being a vampire hunter.

Touka returned home as soon as she could to shower and prayed that the blood scent was washed off from her intense scrubbing. She even went as far as spraying the house with air freshener and herself with perfume.

"I'm home!" Haise announced happily and she went to the door to welcome him, as usual. While most of the times he would just kiss her then quickly go shower, this time he did not do the same. She didn't expect him to throw his arms around her, bury his face into her neck and inhale. The female forced herself to breathe and remain calm.

The strong scent of blood filled his nostrils and he pulled back with a serious expression on his face. "Where have you been? You smell of blood, Touka."

Her blood went cold at that moment and her face paled. Within seconds, he could tell that there was a blood scent on her. All the scrubbing and perfume couldn't prevent him from telling.

"A-Ah that? I went to town today to get some chicken and while they were cutting, some blood spilled on me, that's all. If you can still smell it, it must really stink." She tried to laugh it off but he wasn't convinced.

"Don't lie to me. That doesn't smell like chicken blood, but human blood. I'm a vampire hunter, Touka. Don't you think that by being surrounded with dead bodies every day that I can't even tell the difference between chicken and human blood is weird? Are you hurt? Or did you kill someone? You can tell me."

She trembled, trying to think of a story to convince him. Forcing herself to look shaken, she made her lips tremble and body shake. "I'm sorry for lying. When I went into town today, a body just dropped from the sky onto the street beside me while I was walking. His blood spilled everywhere, including me. They say it was suicide, and it really scared me. No matter how I tried, I just couldn't get the blood smell off of me..."

Haise's eyes softened and he hugged her close. "Is that the reason for the air freshener and perfume? You don't have to worry about it. It'll be alright."

\--

"Haise! You won't like what you're going to hear. Today's meeting is about--" Hide's whispering was cut off when the other colleagues called for them to hurry to the meeting room.

During the meeting...

"The body of the male we found in the forest yesterday is 44 years old, Takafumi Masaki. The marks on his neck were found to be of a vampire's and the vampire responsible is--" A picture flashed across the projector screen. "--Kirishima Touka. She is the last survivor from the Kirishima family and has been deemed a threat. I would like to call upon any volunteers to take her out."

The voices around Haise suddenly seemed so far away as he stared at his girlfriend's picture on the screen. He had his suspicions for a while now and hoped so badly that they weren't true. Alas, they were and she was a vampire. 

What should he do? They were going to kill her. No, wait he had to confirm this fact with her himself first.

"I'll do it." Haise volunteered, while Hide looked at him concernedly.

"Thank you, Investigator Sasaki. We'll assign Investigator Nagachika as your assistant."

\--

"I'm home."

Usually, he would be over the moon to come home at the end of the day just to see Touka but now as he stood at the door, he stared into space, emotionless and dreaded seeing her. He dreaded her response. 

Touka spotted him still standing at the entrance even after asking him to come on in and went to him. Cupping his cheeks, she looked up at him worriedly. "Hey, you okay? If you have troubles, we can talk about them over dinner." Her frown turned into a smile. "Today, I cooked your favorite dishes!"

His heart felt heavy. 

Why are you smiling? Depending on your answer, I might have to kill you...

The sound of her footsteps receded and he finally stepped into the house.


	16. Chapter 16

Even knowing he had to get an answer from her, Haise didn't want to hear it so soon. He wanted to enjoy (possibly) the last meal with her and spend some time with her.

Hence, he had dinner with Touka acting as normal as he could, chatting and laughing over the meal. They washed the dishes once they were done, then proceeded to have a bath with her.

Emerging from the bath warm and comfortable, he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him. Touka went flush up against his chest, arms wrapping around his neck. Leaning down for a kiss, he was elated when she responded earnestly.

They separated and she smiled. "What's up? You're being awfully passionate tonight. I can tell from your kisses."

"Do you love me?" He asked.

Touka cocked her head to the side and frowned. "Why do you ask that? Isn't it obvious?"

"Please..answer me." He controlled his voice from wavering.

She tangled her fingers into the hair on his nape, gazed into his grey eyes lovingly with a smile. "I do, Haise. I love you."

Her honest response made him want to cry but he couldn't help but let a smile show on his face, albeit a weak one.

"Then could you answer another question?"

"Anything."

He turned serious. "Are you a vampire?"

Touka was having such a great time with him that she failed to notice how he was unlike himself all evening. Though he showed that he was happy, he was quiet at times and seemed to be thinking to himself.

Because of that, she did not prepare for this question and her face paled immediately, showing her answer to him. But she had to attempt to bluff her way through it.

"W-what makes you think I am? Of course, I'm not! Don't be stupid." She laughed nervously.

Haise gripped her waist and had a pained expression on his face. "Don't lie to me. Please."

"I wasn't lying. I really am not a vampire."

He released her, went to his desk to grab a pile of documents and shoved it in her face. The first thing that caught Touka's eye was a picture of herself and then information about her such as age, gender etc. The last sentence of the document said 'Above person deemed a vampire: to be eradicated.'

"We found a body in the forest and the DNA of the saliva on the body's puncture marks was found to be from you, the vampire Touka. What do you have to say about this? How long has it been since you regained your memories? Why did you lie?" His voice broke at the last sentence.

Seeing the amount of hurt displayed on his face broke Touka's heart and she cupped his cheeks. "I'm sorry for lying to you. When you found me in the forest, I really didn't have any memories and only got them back on the day where I cooked for you for the first time. While it was true that I didn't want to die, I mostly wanted to be with you. Ever since you came into my life, I have never been happier."

She breathed as she forced her tears back. "I could have left or fled when I got my memories back since it was dangerous to be with you and my identity could be exposed anytime. But by then, I had fallen in love with you. You have to believe me when I say I want to be by your side for as long as I could."

"Why..." Haise's tears fell down his cheeks, hands going to rest over hers. "..Did we have to be born on opposite sides? Why couldn't we have been born humans together, or vampires together?"

His tears brought forward her own as well. He rested his forehead on hers and leaned in for a kiss. It was one of those kisses where they knew it would be their last. A bittersweet kiss. After separating, Touka stepped back hesitantly and held her arms out with a sad smile. "If you need to kill me, do it. If I am to die, I would rather it be by your hands. Then, I can die happy."

Tears clouding his vision, he stumbled over to his katana and grabbed it before pointing it at her. He remained in his spot for the longest time, breathing heavily and it was so quiet in the room.

Haise finally dropped his sword to the floor.

"I can't. You're so cruel, Touka. How could you—after the time we spent together as a couple—expect me to kill the woman I love?"

Touka let her hands drop to her sides. "Haise... I love you too."

Walking over to her, his arms went around her and he buried his face into her hair. She hesitated, hugged him back and closed her eyes to inhale his scent. He refused to let her go and hoped that for this last hug, he would be able to forever etch into his mind her scent and the feel of her warm body against his.

"I'll let you go..." He murmured, kissing her forehead and pulled away to look down at her. "I won't kill you but you need to leave, go somewhere far away from here, where other hunters can't find you. If you stay here, you'll be found eventually."

The thought of being separated from him made her knees weak and heart pain. "No... I want to stay with you. My home is with you, Haise. I don't have any other place to call home."

He sniffed. "I'm sorry... I have to do this to protect you. It's the only solution I can think of..."

Shaking her head, she sobbed. "Don't do this to me, please."

"I would rather you stay alive without me than die if you stay with me. We are people from two different worlds and we were never meant to be together. I'll let you stay tonight but you have to be gone by dawn tomorrow."

With that, Haise left the room, leaving her alone in her sobbing.


	17. Chapter 17

After giving the sleeping Haise one last kiss, Touka held back her tears and left the apartment. Once he heard the door click close, he opened his eyes and got up. He entered the living room to find that the laundry has been already done and breakfast was ready on the dining table for him.

Even after being practically chased out by him, she still went through the trouble to do the house chores. He took a deep breath, feeling the tears already coming on. A note was left on the table with his name on it and he opened it.

\--

Dear Haise

Once again, I'm so sorry for lying to you. The past few months were the best in my life and I have you to thank for that.

I wish you all the happiness in the world and I hope you will find a woman who loves and cherishes you.

Touka

\--

The short but heartbreaking letter was the finishing blow as Haise dropped his knees and sobbed.

\--

"Bro. You look like shit. What happened between you and your girlfriend last night? Don't tell me you..killed her?" Hide whispered.

"I didn't. We broke up and I let her go."

"Where?"

"Somewhere far away. I don't know."

"Okay. I need the deets, the full story. Everything you said and did."

So he told his best friend everything and the only thing Hide could do was facepalm. "Seriously? The only way? You could have talked to me about it before sending her away! We could have come up with a plan!! Are you stupid or what?"

He felt irritation rise within. "It's already done. No point thinking over spilled milk."

"You say that but I know you. You're missing her and you will regret your decision in days to come. After finally finding the woman for you, stupid you actually let her go. Now answer me, despite knowing that she's not human but a vampire, do you still love her?"

Haise thought back to her smiles and kisses. "I do, whether she's a human or not."

"Then you have your answer. You jolly well better get her back."

"B-But I'm a human and she's a vampire. We're in opposite worlds. Besides, I'm a vampire hunter. How could I side with an enemy?" He protested.

Hide gave him a deadpan expression. "Would you rather lose your job or lose her? What are you trying to protect here? What is your priority? What do you want? Don't you dare use you hating vampires as an excuse because she ain't the one who murdered your parents and Arima-san."

The male thought long and hard about his answer. "I...I want to be with her but I also want to protect her. The company wants her dead and I thought the safest way was for her to not be by my side and somewhere far away from this place. I'm very proud of this job I have, but I was never truly happy at it. Killing vampires was never going to bring my parents back. If there was a way for me to be by her side without endangering her life, I would throw everything away in a heartbeat."

Giving a satisfied grin, Hide threw an arm around Haise. "There you have it. Come on, let's go form a plan."

—

Since the investigators in the 20th ward were hunting for her, Touka decided to go to the furthest place, which was the 1st ward. She flew days and nights for 3 weeks before finally reaching the place.

Standing amongst the bustling city of people, she stared at how everything looked so much better than the 20th ward. Everything looked expensive and high-classed. Even the way people dressed were like celebrities.

Looking down at her plain black dress, she frowned because she felt like an outsider here. Which she was. Her nose picked up on a delicious coffee scent and she was lured by it into the small cafe around the corner. The bell rang as the door opened and she was soon greeted by an old man.

—

In order to prevent suspicions from the boss, Haise proposed to conduct his search in 20th ward itself first and sought permission to venture into other wards to find Touka if she wasn't here—but the true reason for this was so he could search for her without looking suspicious.

It's been 1 month of searching the 20th ward but to no avail and Haise was missing Touka more with each day. He often had problems sleeping at night, and now that she was gone, he refused to change his bedsheet and pillow casing because then it would mean her scent was gone—which was the only thing that comforted him at night when she wasn't there.

Before she came into his life, it was normal to come back to a home where no one was around. It was his very own sanctuary. To finally have peace at home after a long day of socializing at work was great. But now, the house was too quiet, even if he loved his quiet peace. And he knew it was this way because Touka wasn't around.

Normally, when he came home, she would greet him with a smile, sometimes a hug or a kiss, then they would have a chat during dinner together. They'd have fun doing housework and cuddled in bed together.

Haise missed her so much and hoped that she was doing well now.


	18. Chapter 18

It took Haise months of slowly visiting every ward until he was finally here in the 1st ward. As he breathed in the fresh air, he sighed sadly when he noticed the street brimming with couples clinging onto one another with smiles on their faces. In a couple, he saw Touka and himself, laughing happily at each other.

It's been 3 months since he last saw her and he missed her so much, so dearly, that he dreamt about her in his sleep every night. With each passing day, he regretted how he had thrown her out without even thinking of other options for them to survive.

If he had, they would be together right now.

The only thing that comforted him was the fact that Hide constantly updated him on how Touka's body had not been found which gave him a small hope that she was alive somewhere. Being a volunteer for her case, he stressed and refused to let other investigators help him, in fear that they might get to her before he does and hurt her.

Feet aching from all the walking and traveling, he came across a quiet cafe in the corner and was attracted to it by the strong scent of coffee. His mouth watered. He would get out to find her as soon as he finished that coffee and a pastry perhaps.

A chime rang as he entered the cafe and noted that the empty shop was due to it being late. The shop closes at 8pm and it was already 7.30pm. He hoped that they were still taking orders but found that there were no employees as he glanced around.

He took a seat at the counter, rang the bell and waited patiently. Footsteps echoed through the empty store as he directed his attention to the 'staff only' door which opened.

—

Touka had been looking at her phone, scrolling through pictures that she had taken with Haise. Despite how it's been months and that she should be over him, she always found herself coming back to these pictures and sobbed while wondering what could have been between them if they weren't from different worlds. She wanted a life with him, as well as children but it couldn't be done.

Just as the first tear was about to fall, the bell from the shop rang and she quickly wiped her wet eyes before heading outside. She thought she was dreaming when she saw the man she loved sitting in her workplace who seemed equally as shocked to see her—his eyes widening and lips parting.

She needed to run. She couldn't get her hopes up.

So she did the first thing that came to her mind. She turned, reached for the doorknob but was too late as he had grabbed her wrist and pulled.

"Touka, please don't leave! I-It took me months to find you."

She could hear the sorrow in his pleading words and she controlled her own voice from wavering. "Why are you here? Why, after you threw me out?"

Immense regret filled him from her words. "P-please listen to me. I have an idea to allow us to be together."

At that, tears flowed down her cheeks and she turned to him. "Don't. Just don't. My heart won't be able to take any more pain."

His heart ached for her. For her who shed tears because of him. He cupped her cheeks, wiped the tears away and leaned in to press his lips onto her trembling ones. His heart soared for a moment when she returned the kiss, only to fall when her hands pushed him back.

Touka shook her head, eyes closed. "No. Haise, please... Don't do this."

"If...you hear me out and don't like the plan, I promise that I will...leave you alone. But please hear what I have to say. I want another chance—a second chance—with you, Touka." He pleaded.

Her silence made his heart race and he swore he let out a soft sigh of relief when she told him to give her time to lock up the store.

Once she was done with everything, she led him into the back and up the stairs when the employees of the cafe lived. Her room was at the end of the corridor and after allowing him into her room, she left him alone there so she could shower.

Putting on her clothes in the bathroom, Touka placed her hand on her chest, the area over her heart as she felt it go badump badump quickly. Her former lover was in her room right at this moment and she didn't know if she had it in her not to throw her arms around him and kiss him. She had missed him too much.

She pressed her fingers to her lips and recalled the warmth of his on hers from their kiss earlier on. Her face was warming now and she knew she had a blush on her cheeks without even looking into the mirror. Gathering whatever courage and restraint she had, she stepped out of the bathroom and into her room where he waited.


	19. Chapter 19

Haise watched as Touka sat down onto the bed beside him, putting an obvious distance between them and frowned. Though he knew they weren't a couple now, he was still upset that she didn't choose to sit closer to him.

"I'm listening." She said.

With that, he started speaking of the plan that he and Hide had come up with. Throughout the whole thing, her facial expression never changed which made it hard for him to tell what she was thinking. Once he was done, he looked expectantly yet nervously at her. "What do you think?"

"Do you think it'll really work? That is, your boss and company will believe it?" Her voice was soft, uncertain.

"It will. We will make it work, but it can only be done with your cooperation. Do you trust me, Touka?"

She bit her lower lip and smiled. "I do."

He took her hand and squeezed. An apologetic and regretful expression appeared on his face. "I'm sorry for not making an effort to think of this from the start. I shouldn't have let you go. I was an idiot to think that just because we're from different worlds meant that we couldn't love one another. After you left, I thought about it really hard and realized that even though you were a vampire, I couldn't stop loving you. Please be my girlfriend again."

Tears brimmed in her eyes. "You really mean it? That you still love me, despite what I am?"

Haise nodded. "Yes, I still love you."

Closing the distance between them, Touka threw her arms around her and sobbed. "I love you too, Haise.."

He started to feel emotional himself and fought back the tears threatening to fall. His arms instinctively wrapped around her torso and he buried his face into her neck. "I promise that we will never be apart ever again.."

She grunted in response.

They separated hesitantly from each other and Haise frowned upon looking at her crying. "It seems that I'm always making you cry, isn't it? I'm sorry. I should be making you laugh instead of cry. I'm a failure as a boyfriend."

Touka shook her head. "That's not true. When we were together, I was so happy. You made me so happy. Happier than I had ever been in hundreds of years."

"Hundreds of years." He echoed. "How old are you exactly?"

She hit his arm playfully and pouted. "Don't you know that it's rude to ask a lady about her age?! I'm 600 years old! Don't you dare say I'm old or I'll kill you!"

He winced, he hadn't meant to make it sound like she was an old woman. "How old is 600 years in human age by the way?"

"Umm... I guess around 26 or 27??? I don't know. Why?"

Haise laughed and rested his forehead against hers. "Nothing. Just glad that you're not older than me. I'm 30 by the way."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "No way!! I thought you were 24 or 25! You look too young!"

"I could say the same for yourself. You look young."

They laughed and he leaned in. He gazed at her. Then, she closed her eyes and waited. His lips touched hers and it felt just like the first time they kissed. It ignited a spark within them and they continued kissing even after Haise pushed her gently back so she laid on the bed.

His cheeks were red and he reached for the hem of her shirt. "Can we..?"

Warmth flooded her whole body as she filled in his missing words. It's been a while and she wanted him. She nodded.

As they shrugged their clothes off and moans soon filled the air, their making love felt really raw and emotional. They took their time, exploring each other's bodies again, and Touka felt as if she were whole again when his body joined with hers. She was sure that Haise felt the same—with the tears in his eyes.

Nothing would ever feel better than this moment as they lay in one another's arms, gazing into one another's eyes. It felt as if the whole world revolved only around them.

It was over all too soon, with Haise collapsing onto her chest, pushing his weight down onto her. He rolled over to the side after catching his breath and hugged her close to him. "I missed you..." he murmured, kissing her sweaty forehead.

Her fingers tangled in his messy hair and she smiled sadly. "I missed you too."

"I promise that we'll never be apart again. If I break that promise, I give you permission to hit me."

Touka laughed. Her eyes drooped in exhaustion. Even though she was tired, she forced herself to stay awake because she wanted to enjoy this moment with him—but was mostly afraid that when she woke up, he would be gone. 

Before falling asleep, she felt his lips on hers and him pushing her head to rest on his chest. "Sweet dreams..." He whispered.


	20. Chapter 20

Morning came and Touka was awoken by the sunlight that filtered through the curtains and the sounds of the birds chirping outside. She glanced around the room, then down at her naked body. Last night really wasn't a dream after all, she thought as she smiled to herself.

She turned around and heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that he was still here with her. She watched as he slept, face looking so much younger as if he were a young boy and left a kiss on his nose before getting up (and hesitantly separating from him and his warm body) to get ready for work.

—

Exiting from the bathroom fresh-faced with all her work clothes on, Touka spotted Haise already awake and staring straight at her dressing table, dazed. "Good morning, sleepyhead."

His head turned to her direction and his face brightened at the sight of her. "Morning." He greeted cheerily.

Settling down at her dressing table, she combed her hair, now long, put on some light makeup and her earrings. All the while doing those, she felt Haise's stare burning into her back and she estimated him coming to her in 3, 2, 1...

His arms wrapped around her from behind and she sighed happily. She knew him so well. He got her to stand and spun her around so that she faced him. Leaning in, he wanted to steal a kiss and she blocked his kiss with her hand. "No kisses! I know if I let you start now, it'll end with me in the bed naked."

Haise grinned lazily, and her heart skipped a beat because he looked so handsome. "Oh really? You like it, so why don't you let me kiss you?"

Her cheeks burned. "I do, but I'll be late for work."

"What's one day or two being late for work..." he murmured, pressing kisses down the sides of her neck, his arms tightening around her waist.

She gasped and pushed him away—hesitantly. Smiling, she cupped his cheeks and ran her fingers through his unruly hair. "After work, okay? I'll let you do anything you want to me after work. I don't want to be late to work and disappoint my boss who took me in after I left you. Please."

At that, his smile disappeared and he became melancholy, serious. "Right. It's important to repay our benefactors. In exchange for you going to work, I'm taking you out on a date tonight."

"A date..?"

He nodded. "I want to spend some time with you. It's been a while since we went out together."

Her eyes watered and she forced them back—not wanting to destroy her eye makeup. "Okay."

—

Towards the end of the day, Touka brimmed with excitement. In a few hours, she would be off work and going on a date with Haise! She couldn't wait to leave work and get dressed for the date.

Noticing that she's been fidgety all day, Nishiki—her senior at work and a vampire—decided to ask what's up. "So what's gotten you all nervous today?"

"Ah, I'm going on a date later with my boyfriend. We got back together again."

At that, Nishiki stood closer to her and lowered his voice. "Are you sure? He's an investigator, isn't he? Won't that be dangerous for you?"

"Yes, but we have a plan of escaping. I love him so much and he loves me too. I'm so happy with him.." She murmured, eyes softening at the remembrance of the passionate night she had with him just yesterday.

He shrugged. "If that's what you have decided, I'll gladly support you. Just make sure to tell the manager your plans so he doesn't get any surprises."

"I will, thank you." 

—

Work was finally over and Touka headed to her room as fast as he could. She opened the door, to find Haise already changed and looking in the mirror. He smiled at her. "Welcome back."

"Your clothes.. they're different?" She asked, puzzled.

"Ahh... I went back to the hotel I stayed in and brought my luggage back here. You don't mind that I stay here, right..?"

His words were uncertain as if he wasn't sure if she would let him stay.

"Of course you can stay."

He grinned. "Get changed and we're going out!"

\--

Despite being the one who decided to bring his girlfriend on a date, Haise was now panicking. While she was busy at work, he returned to his hotel to bring his luggage over, spent a few hours having a skype meeting with his co-workers and boss, and spent another few hours working on his report.

By the time he was done, he only had 30 minutes to research on the places to go on their date. What was he even thinking, asking to bring her out when he was still so new to this ward? He hasn't even been here for 3 days!

Willing his heart to calm down, he wondered if it would be better to tell her the truth right now or never. Seeing how excited she was as they walked hand in hand into town, he didn't have the heart to tell her. 

He first brought her to a rabbit cafe, where he watched her happily trying to catch the rabbits and hugging them with a huge smile on her face. Then, he was gone. His mind went blank.

Deciding to spill the beans now, he closed his eyes and with great regret, started speaking. "...I'm sorry, I didn't really have time to prepare for our date. I had work all day and I'm still new to this place..."

The grin that formed on her lips shocked him since he was expecting her to be angry at him. 

"It's okay. I expected that. In that case, I want to bring you somewhere."

Touka brought him to a shop that sold men's ties and picked a navy blue with stripes tie for him. She put it on his neck and tied it with ease. Smoothing the fabric down, she stepped back and smiled in satisfaction. 

"When I was shopping, I saw this and immediately thought of how this design would fit you. But I couldn't buy it since we weren't together anymore at the time. Do you like it?"

Tears threatened to escape. "I do. You know me so well."

"That's great. I'll go purchase it."

In the time they were apart, Haise couldn't imagine how it was like for her to survive outside on her own after he threw her out. He'd ask her another time but for now, he would do his best to make her happy and make more memories with her to make up for the time they lost.


	21. Chapter 21

Haise first drafted his resignation letter and submitted it to his boss. The fact that he submitted it before carrying out the plan was to make sure it wouldn't seem suspicious if he looked like he was planning to resign for some time already, and not wanting to resign straight after he completed his task of 'killing' Touka.

His letter stated that he would complete his current job before resigning as it is his responsibility and last task as a vampire hunter. As for reason, he put it as settling down with a wife and family so he doesn't want to stay in a dangerous job anymore for the sake of his future family.

They waited for a week for the letter to be sent and processed before the three of them--Haise, Touka, and Hide made their way into the forest to make sure no one sees them.

Their plan was to create a situation where Haise indeed killed Touka, by making a wound on her torso which will require clothes tearing, the coloring of red and usage of fake blood. The boys borrowed her makeup and decided to add some scratches and bruises on her arms and legs to show signs of a struggle between Haise's and Touka's supposedly 'fight'.

Making her face pale white with the use of foundation was also needed to show death. To make her death more real, a trail of blood from her lips to her neck was added.

After the makeup and props were done, they made her lie down onto a pile of dead leaves in the forest, had her close her eyes and took pictures of her 'dead' body. The pictures were to be used as evidence in the report they would write afterward.

Haise and Hide needed to make sure that the reports they wrote were similar, in terms of facts not contrasting one another's to avoid suspicions.

After that, they moved on to make fake identities for Haise and Touka. This was to allow them to suddenly 'disappear' from this world and avoid getting tracked down. Haise changed his name to Kaneki Ken, while Touka changed her name to Kaneki Touka, as his wife and they went as far as filling in the marriage form and submitted it. She found the fact that she was his wife very amusing when he hasn't even proposed to her yet, and laughed quietly as he made the fake ids.

Haise being Haise, only smiled and squeezed her hand. "The proposal is in order. This is just for the ids."

She flushed, knowing that he had just hinted her that he was going to propose one day.

Everything they did up to now was easy. Now, this was the hard part. They needed to return to headquarters in the 20th ward and make a presentation on their latest vampire kill—about Touka and Haise was so afraid that he would mess it up because he was horrible at lying. When he did, he had a bad habit of touching his chin and stuttering words. But he had to do it, for the sake of both of them.

Holding her hands in his, Haise kissed his girlfriend and pulled back hesitantly. "I need to return now. When everything is settled and I have quitted my job successfully, I promise I'll be back to fetch you. Then, we'll go somewhere far away to live, okay?"

Touka smiled nervously. "Okay. I'll be waiting. Keep me updated by text."

He nodded. "I will."

And so, he left, leaving her alone in her now quiet apartment. She prayed that their hard work will pay off and they would soon be able to be together.

—

At headquarters...

Haise's hands felt clammy as he walked into a meeting room full of higher-ups and his boss. Despite rehearsing multiple times with Hide and forcing himself not to show signs of deceit, he would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous.

Of course he was, his whole future—and Touka's—depended on this presentation. He would not screw it up. He cannot.

And the presentation began.

Haise had made it through the whole thing without stuttering or touching his chin. He was about to let out a sigh of relief when everyone started nodding at the end but his boss seemed to have a question.

"Where was the body disposed?"

"I-in the ocean, sir."

He stuttered!

His gaze turned suspicious. "Which ocean?"

"The one near 1st ward.."

His boss narrowed his eyes at him and he swallowed nervously. He knew why this question was asked. Their company was a private company, not acknowledged by the government. Despite how their basis of killing vampires was justified, the government just couldn't make the company a public one because it was still killing, murdering of a person.

Therefore, to avoid the public from questioning the government about randomly found dead bodies—even though they were caused by CCV—the government forced the CCV to make sure that the bodies of the vampire they kill are to be disposed of and never found. That meant that they were to use every and any method to dispose of the body.

After a moment of longgggg silence with Haise and Hide holding their breaths, the boss finally let up and leaned back against his chair. "Good job. You guys can rest now."

Exiting the meeting room, Haise kept his excitement in check and only brought his phone out to text Touka after he entered the bathroom.

—

To: Kirishima Touka

Mission succeed!!

Haise

—

A message to which she replied one second later:

To: Sasaki Haise

Come back and let's celebrate.

Touka


	22. Chapter 22

Haise went back to the 1st ward to see Touka and they spent hours discussing their forever destination. They had to leave Japan and go to someplace where CCV did not have offices as well as places that did not have any vampires.

They finally decided on Australia, where both of them had wanted to stay in for a long time and booked the air tickets there. It was exciting, packing for a trip with a loved one and thinking of all the fun things they could do in a foreign country.

It was also sad because they had to leave the country they have been living in for their whole lives. To Haise, it meant leaving behind his friends and home. To Touka, it meant leaving behind memories of her family, with whom she lived together for the majority of her life.

But now they were going to have a brand new start, in a new country and with one another.

It's been 2 months since they settled down in the countryside, staying in a small yet cozy cottage home.

Waking up from a deep slumber, Haise pushed the hair covering Touka's face away before resting an arm on her waist. She opened her eyes soon after and smiled lazily. He would never get tired of waking up next to her in the mornings, and see how the sunlight made her look like a beautiful goddess. "Morning. Do we have any plans today?"

It was a Sunday.

"I'm bringing you on a date today." He murmured, lips finding her forehead.

He allowed her to snuggle into his chest a little while longer before they both got up to prepare for the day.

\--

Their date consisted of a coffee date, where they relaxed in a cafe for hours, enjoying each other's company. After that, they walked around town, doing some window shopping. Night soon fell, and Haise brought Touka to an area in which he chanced upon his morning walks.

It was a cliff and he had specially brought a picnic mat so that they could sit on the ground and enjoy the dinner they bought from town. Touka was amused when he brought out 2 candles and placed them down on the mat.

"A candlelit dinner, is it? There's never an end to your romantic and cheesy side." She teased.

He laughed and placed his hand over hers. "But you like romantic, don't you?"

She giggled. "Yeah."

They watched the sunset across the horizon, the sky darkening and stars coming out. Unlike in the city area, here where they stayed in the countryside, they could often see shooting stars in the night sky. Tonight was one of the many nights they'd seen a shooting star but it was the first time they laid under the sky and enjoyed the stars like this.

Glancing over to Touka who was smiling at the sky, Haise found himself getting nervous by the second. "Will you listen to me?" He asked.

At that, she turned her head to him. "Hm?"

He took a huge breath. He could do this. He prepared for a long time now already. 

"I'm a human, while you're a vampire. We were from two different worlds and weren't supposed to be together. And yet, we fell in love. During the time we were separated, I thought about you. I realized that I wanted to be with you even though you were a vampire, and couldn't stand the thought of being apart from you. "

He quickly brought out a box from his bag and opened it to reveal a diamond ring within. "I want to be your real husband, not only in name. I want to wake up every day with you in my bed. I want to have children with you. I want to grow old with you. I love you, Touka. Will you marry me?"

Touka gasped at the ring and covered her mouth as her eyes brimmed with tears. "Are you sure that you want to be with me? I--"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm willing to throw everything away if it meant that I could be with you. Say yes, and make me the happiest man alive." 

She threw her arms around his neck and sobbed. "I do! Yes, I will marry you."

While Haise thought he would be the happiest on the day she accepted his proposal, it wasn't the case. 

The first time he felt the happiest was during her acceptance of the proposal. 

The second time he felt the happiest was during their wedding ceremony when he saw her in her wedding gown. He cried at the sight because she looked so beautiful and he couldn't wait for them to be husband and wife.

The third time he felt the happiest was during their honeymoon, where they enjoyed a 3 weeks honeymoon in the city of love, Paris. During the day, they explored everywhere, eating all the good food and visiting all the sights. During the night, they spent it in bed, exploring each other's bodies and laid in one another's arms till morning.

The fourth time he felt the happiest was when they found out they were expecting a child. Haise would always rub Touka's growing belly and read stories to the unborn child.

The fifth time he felt the happiest was when their child was born and he finally got to hold his daughter. They named her Ichika which meant One Flower. Haise was so anxious and nervous the whole time during the birth by his wife's side. He was reminded of how strong his wife was as she screamed and suffered during the birth.

As Haise laid in bed with Touka in his arms and the now 6-year-old Ichika in Touka's arms, he stared at the sleeping ladies and smiled. A shooting star caught his eye and he wished for more happy times ahead. Even without wishing, he knew that they would continue to experience happy times as long as they were together as a family.

He thought back to the first time he met Touka. Who knew he would fall in love with the injured girl he found in the forest, marry her and have children with her? Only God knew. 

Their love wasn't forbidden after all.


End file.
